Fate of LeBron James Weighs Heavy — Even on The Black Keys

With the Cleveland Cavaliers out of the NBA playoffs, basketball fans are as focused on where free-agent LeBron James will land next season as they are on who will push ahead to this year’s league championship. And few fans are more obsessed than James’s fellow Akron, Ohio, natives.

Two such Akronites, Dan Auerbach and Patrick Carney of the rock duo the Black Keys, sat down with the Journal to discuss their new album, “Brothers,” as well as their Wednesday night benefit show at the nonprofit Housing Works Bookstore Café. But talk quickly turned to the fate of Akron’s favorite son.

“He’s gone,” said Auerbach.

“His MVP speech gave it away,” concurred Carney. “He gave it in Akron, and he kept talking about, ‘Wherever I’m at, I’m always from Akron.’ This is the beginning of ‘Don’t hate me when I leave.’ If he’s not going to win, he’s going to go somewhere where he’s going to get paid a lot to not win.”

The two recalled childhoods spent rooting for underfunded Cleveland teams in every sport — and decried the bloated New York sports culture.

“It’s almost like cheating, with the Yankees,” Auerbach said.

Added Carney, “If they get a new hot dog machine in Cleveland, it’s a big story. When we were kids, our parents used to take us to see the Indians play in the old stadium where there were, like, rafters and beams every other seat. It was like three dollars to get in. I remember, I was like 8, my older brother was sitting next to me, he had a mitt and a Ron Kittle jersey on, and I knew — there’s just something wrong. It should say ‘Canseco.’ It should say ‘Mattingly.’ But it says ‘Kittle.’”

So are the Black Keys officially against James dumping the Cavs to play in New York?